Another Killing Game
by Painful Parody
Summary: We've all seen it before. 16 students awaken in a mysterious place with no memory how or why they got there. This time? A strange castle, built deep underground. What's it doing here? Why is the Hope's Peak crest everywhere? And who is controlling the strange black-and-white teddy bear, demanding that the 16 high-schoolers murder each other? The Killing Games are not over yet...
1. Prologue Part 1

**So I know I have some other unfinished works out there but I mostly just wanted to at least get the prologue written. This'll be my first crack at a mystery, and I figured it would be better to try and write one as a fanfiction before writing a more original work. **

**I don't have a lot to say, only to expect canon-typical content. Plenty of violence and mystery and intrigue and hopefully some decently-timed humor.**

**Oh, and my last thing: This story will **_**easily**_ **be the slowest updated. In my brainstorming sheet I kind of started at the end and am working the beginning and ending towards one another. Hopefully this means I can make something at least somewhat cohesive.**

**Enjoy! And do feel free to give me some critique, comments, reviews, whatever kind of response you feel like. But no pressure! If you don't want to, don't do it.**

**Let's begin…**

* * *

**Prologue**

**A Prelude to Despair**

Everything was dark. It was dark, cold, hard and uncomfortable. It took Sachiko a few moments to realize that this feeling was most likely due to the fact that her face was pressed into the floor. With a horrendous headache and a sickening, dizzying sensation she raised her head off the ground and forced herself to open her eyes.

It did little good. The room was dark- too dark to see clearly, and her vision was blurry and swimming. The girl groaned, rolling slowly from her front to her side, before managing to prop herself up against a wall. Her fingers ran alongside the stone carefully.

...Stone?

Sachiko twisted her body to face the wall and squinted through the gloom, and managed to confirm that the walls here appeared to be crafted of stone. The floor was the same way.

Immediately, questions flooded her mind. Where was she? How had she got here? What was she doing before she had lost consciousness? Had she been kidnapped?

Sachiko reluctantly shelved these questions for the moment, putting them in the back of her mind. For now, she had to try and make sure she was still alright. Slowly she ran her hands over herself, checking for any injuries. Nothing. Even her clothes was unscathed. Feeling a little better, and with her headache still pounding behind her eyes, Sachiko made a few cursory attempts to stand, before managing to get her balance.

Her legs shook slightly as she rose to her feet, but she managed. She leaned on the wall, taking a moment to recover from the sudden rush of blood from her head, blinking slowly. Her vision was clearing, and her eyes were finally beginning to adjust to the dark.

She was in some kind of cell. While the walls were made of plain stone, the bars at the front were sturdy, probably steel, and appeared to have a fairly high-tech mechanism holding the door shut. Approaching the bars, Sachiko peered through. There was a hall, and on the opposite side, not far, she could see more cells, lining the wall just across.

"Psst!" A soft hiss filled the air and she tensed. A figure shuffled in the cell across from hers. "Hey! You awake?" The voice was low and tense, but surprisingly calm given the owner of the voice was somewhat small, from what Sachiko could see in the dark. Sachiko nodded. For a moment she waited for a reply, then realized her neighbor across the way couldn't see her, and cleared her throat.

"Y-yeah." she stuttered, slowly making her way to the bars. "Do you know where we are?"

"Not a clue." The stranger sighed. "I was hoping maybe you knew. What about why we're here? Do you know that?"

"Sorry… I… just sort of woke up here..." Sachiko nervously swallowed. "But this seems… really dangerous."

Suddenly, there was a noisy clattering and banging from the cell next to Sachiko's. "Fucking _fuck!" _Bellowed a deep female voice. "Let me out of here you bastards! Motherfuckers, open this door!"

Sachiko flinched, grimacing at the violent roaring. It sounded like whoever was next to her was bashing the bars and shaking them aggressively.

"Hey!" Barked the voice across the way. "Save it! You're not gonna break those, not that easily."

"Says who?!" The voice snarled, but the rattling stopped.

"Ummm…" Another female voice tentatively spoke up. "Hello? Hey, can you hear me? How many people are here?"

"I can count… eight cells on the other wall." A huge, deep voice slowly ground out from the other side of the hall.

Sachiko blinked, squinting through the room, counting the cells she could see. "I see eight too, opposite me. Is that all of us?"

"Sixteen…" The first voice murmured, thoughtfully. "This is… I don't even know what this is and I've seen a lot of weird things…"

Before the conversation could continue, there was a sudden hiss, and a low rumble as the bars slowly lifted, every cell opening. The room was so silent, Sachiko felt afraid to speak. She hesitated, before cautiously stepping out. "...Hello?" She asked nervously, looking around.

Slowly, the others all emerged. Fifteen, not counting herself. A strange, motley crew. At first, Sachiko could see no consistency between the students.

A rather short boy dressed up rather ostentatiously with brightly colored and clashing clothes looked about. "Ah…! These crests… Hey, are you all also about to be... Hope's Peak students…?"

Sachiko started. "Everyone… here is…?"

Slowly, she scanned the faces. Now that the lights were on and everyone was out she could pick out a few faces. Some of these people were familiar. And on their clothing were different crests. Then that would mean…

"Ultimates…" A tall boy with glasses and a hawkish glower in his eyes murmured, adjusting them thoughtfully. "Whoever has us here appears to want us for our Ultimate Talents…"

"But I haven't even started yet…" Sachiko mumbled. "I just got my invitation… Um…" She paused, thinking back. At first, she had nearly said "Yesterday" but then the word had died. Had it really been just a day ago? Had something happened since then? Wracking her brain as hard as she could, Sachiko could only remember getting her acceptance letter.

"...Yeah, that's what I remember too." The owner of the loud, angry voice had calmed down, grinding her fists into her hands. She was easily the largest person there, with a rough look to match her attitude. "What the fuck is happening?"

"Hey, everyone take a breath." Another girl suggested. "Slow down for just a second. We're moving too fast and it's going to get us into a frenzy. For now, we should explore what we should do next, right?"

"Seconded!" An athletic-looking man grinned, although it seemed a bit forced. "Before we go arguing about how we got here, maybe we should see if we can leave this weird hall?"

Nobody had any response to that, so the group stuck close, advancing across the way. The girl with the foul mouth ended up walking in front. The hall was narrow and fairly short, and there was a single door at the end. The girl pushed, and it swung open. "...Huh."

Sachiko gasped as they exited the strange miniature prison, and found herself utterly flabbergasted at the room that she found herself slowly entering, spinning slowly to take it in.

It was massive. The high ceiling, the large stone walls, and the beautiful columns supporting the ceiling.

"Oh-hoh~?" A nervous girly giggle arose from the crowd. "This almost resembles a… well, the entrance hall of a palace or some such…"

"Are we in a literal castle right now?" Sachiko muttered, mind reeling. She took a few more steps, before stumbling and tripping on the dense, plush carpet. She blinked, looking down at it. It was a strange design. Large, circular, in the dead-center of the room. Black and white, split right down the middle, like an incorrect Yin and Yang symbol.

"What the hell?"

"This is even weirder…"

Sachiko didn't hear everyone's words. This was too much. Her brain was overloading. She couldn't think straight. She couldn't even see straight. Everything was just sort of grinding in fast motion. She could hear people talking, arguing, confused suggestions, but things began to quiet down.

Sachiko was shaken from her stunned state by literally being shaken. "Hey! Are you okay?"

Sachiko jerked, looking up at the one who had shaken her. It was the first one who's voice she'd heard. The very colorful looking boy. He grinned, offering her a hand, which she clumsily took and he yanked her to her feet with surprising strength.

"Phew. Thought you had passed out there. Everyone's kind of grouped up and we're exploring this place." He explained, lacing his fingers behind his head, watching Sachiko carefully in case she decided to keel over again. "We gotta figure out what's going on somehow, right?"

"I-I guess so…" Sachiko shook her head, slapping her cheeks firmly. "Okay, okay… I'm okay now. I mean I'm not okay but I'm more okay than I was and I'll be able to be as close to okay as I can be."

The colorful guy leaned in a bit. "Well then, Miss "Okay" ... Mind if I get your name so I can address you properly?"

"Oh! Uh, right. I'm Sachiko Homugi. Nice to meet ya… I guess I can tell you my Talent too, not that it's… really an actual talent…" Sachiko lowered her gaze bashfully.

"Hm? What's that supposed to mean?"

"I guess Hope's Peak uses a lottery every year to pick a random, ordinary student in the country… and I guess that was me. They called me the "Ultimate Lucky Student" but… I don't know if I'd call that a talent…"

"That's kinda strange, but don't sell yourself short yet." He grinned, giving a thumbs up. "Maybe your luck will kick in and you'll trip on a super important clue or find something really convoluted that will help us out."

Sachiko pouted a bit, but ignored the teasing for now. "What about you, then? Who are you?"

"Right, right. Introductions are still goin! The name's Daiki Yamane! I'm the Ultimate Acrobat!" He flourished his arms. Now that she wasn't overwhelmed, Sachiko could get a chance to take a longer look at him. He was short, only a little taller than herself, with a mess of spiky hair that just sort of seemed to do what it wanted. His clothes were garish and bright, yellow, purple and green, all clashing wildly in a mad patchwork. He also seemed to be wearing thick eyeliner and mascara.

"I think I've heard that name before…"

"Not surprised!" Daiki chuckled. "I bet you saw my name on a poster or online. I've done lots and lots of shows! Circus performances, or on stage, I've even performed outside of the country!"

"That's pretty amazing though." Sachiko nervously wrung her hands. "You must be really famous…"

"Most Ultimates are. I don't mind the fame. After all, I live to perform~!" Daiki flourished, doing a wild, mock bow. "Bouncing about, dodging danger, or flying on the trapeze… That is what I am, you know? I've always been an acrobat, ever since I was little!"

Sachiko cracked a little grin. Daiki's energy was infectious.

"Tell you what, why don't we stick together for now? Pretty much everyone paired off with someone else. We figured it would be safer that way." Daiki looked around. "Come on, let's see if we can figure out what this place is, and we can meet the others properly too."

Sachiko envied Daiki's optimism, and nervously sped up to keep up with him as he began speedily walking down a hall.

* * *

The place was definitely like a castle. Stone walls, strange chandeliers, and a great deal of fancy decor. Although Sachiko noticed that the "chandeliers" were actually electrical. More of the strange anachronistic nature of the place was sticking out to her. Strange high-tech monitors, and cameras were positioned all over the castle, high on the walls and out of reach.

"Are we… being watched?" Sachiko grimaced, as the two passed yet another camera. Daiki could only offer a shrug. He continued a bit further, before finally pausing to try a door in the hallway.

The door led to a sort of large parlour room, with couches, chairs, an empty bookshelf, and sixteen doors. Two other students were there, looking around the room and at the doors, peeking in them. One was tiny, the other, _huge._

"Are these supposed to be dorms?" Sachiko pondered aloud.

"Looks like it!" The tiny one, a young girl with a set of childish-looking pigtails straightened. She had been bent over a bit, reading a nameplate, but straightening up didn't really make her much taller. She couldn't even be five feet tall. "They have names and little portraits of us." The girl adjusted herself, sucking on the inside her cheek with a thoughtful look, examining Sachiko. "Isn't this place queer though? I've never been anywhere like it, and it's just absolutely puzzling."

Sachiko studied the girl just as she was studied in turn. Her intensely staring steel grey eyes had unusually long lashes, and her plain uniform's dark colors made her look a bit grim, although the impact was lessened by her childish face and her high-pitched, almost squeaky voice.

"It is very strange isn't it?" She asked, bouncing a little, nerves rattled. "It almost feels like some tourist attraction, or a place where someone very wealthy would live…" For a moment the girl trailed off, before her eyes widened. "Oh yes! I should introduce myself as well…! I'm Haruki Nishimoto! The Ultimate Hypnotist…!"

"Ultimate… Hypnotist?" Sachiko felt a bit nervous. Could this girl…?

"Oh, don't look so frightened!" Haruki pouted, crossing her arms. "Hypnotism only can be performed on a willing party. Inducing a trance state only works if the person being hypnotized is receptive!" Haruki grew increasingly animated, flailing her small arms as she ranted.

Sachiko jolted at how unhappy Haruki seemed. This… must happen to her a lot.

"Hey, um, I'm sorry." Sachiko sheepishly attempted to placate the girl. "I didn't mean to assume or anything, I don't really know anything about hypnotism…"

Haruki calmed down, taking a few quick breaths, her arms falling softly to her sides. "Oh… I guess I can forgive you. This time." She huffed, turning her back partially on Sachiko. She looked over her shoulder and gave a small grin. "Well… maybe I can explain it more later. I could even put you in a nice relaxing trance…!"

"Um, I'll think about it…" Sachiko forced a smile back, and Haruki turned back to exploring the dorms.

"I've read about Haruki online." Daiki murmured so the hypnotist couldn't overhear. "She's very well-known in therapy and hypnotist circles, and is incredibly talented at bringing people into a trance-state. She's basically the youngest hypnotherapist there is. I hear she's used her skills a lot for helping people get over all kinds of fear and anxiety…"

"That's amazing…" Sachiko shook her head. She really had misjudged the girl.

"Excuse me…" A very calm, deep voice rumbled. Sachiko turned and nearly jumped out of her skin. She had totally forgotten about the other student in the room. He was enormous, far far taller than any high-school student. His uniform still fit him well, however, despite his hulking frame. It must have been custom-made.

"Y-yes?" She stuttered. Sachiko mentally hit herself. She needed to try and make a good first impression.

"I didn't get your name." His expression was a bit frightening, but Sachiko put together that it was just the natural shape of his face. It was like his entire body had been chiseled to be imposing.

"Oh! That's right. I'm Sachiko Homugi." She gave a little greeting bow, hands clasping instinctively. "Pleased to meet you…"

The huge man rubbed the top of his bald head for a moment, before he spoke, voice slow and deliberate. "I'm Katsuo. Katsuo Ito. Ultimate Bodybuilder."

"Bodybuilder? I definitely can see that." Sachiko uttered a very nervous laugh. Katsuo nodded.

"I worked long and hard to get to my size, but it seems to be a bit…" He awkwardly shrugged. "...Scary. I'm a nice guy, even though I have a scary face. I swear!" He thumped a huge hand against his enormous chest, giving Sachiko a smile.

She was sure it wasn't intentional, but it only served to make him look crazed.

"Anyway, listen…" He cracked his knuckles heavily. "If any danger comes up, you find me. Got it?"

"Uh… Sure thing Katsuo…" Daiki bounced from foot to foot, trying not to seem too anxious. "We'll let you know?"

"When I was little my mom told me since I was the biggest and strongest I had to keep the smaller kids safe and that's no different now." Katsuo crossed his arms. "But so far nothing too dangerous has shown up here… I haven't even needed to move anything heavy."

Daiki shook his head. "It's alright. I haven't found anything to use my Talent for here, and I don't think Sachiko's exactly been the luckiest…"

"Not today…" Sachiko shook her head. Katsuo did not seem eased by their words, but it was difficult to tell…

* * *

Wandering further into the castle, Sachiko and Daiki discovered a dining hall. It was a grand hall, with a large round table with sixteen chairs. Velvet seats, silken tablecloth, and an atmosphere that screamed "wealth".

And if the room seemed wealthy, the young man sitting at the table lost in thought seemed even wealthier. His uniform was a suit, finely tailored and fit him perfectly. Round-rimmed glasses were perched upon his nose, and he was perfectly and meticulously groomed. He straightened a bit when Sachiko and Daiki entered.

"...You were the girl who had a panic attack in the hall." He curtly remarked, standing slowly.

"Um… Yeah." Sachiko felt incredibly vulnerable for some reason. The lanky man didn't seem hostile, but something about him was incredibly sharp and unwelcoming. "I'm Sachiko Homugi…"

"Juurou Igarashi. Ultimate Maestro."

_That_ was a name that Sachiko knew. Juurou was a musician and a conductor both. Known for writing, playing and directing numerous works, his concerts drew huge crowds. No wonder he looked so rich- if performances involving him brought in so many people, surely they would have brought in a lot of money.

His sharp gaze felt a little unsettling.

"You had better not be panicking or blacking out on us all that much. The last thing we need is dead weight."

The caustic words made her shiver a bit. Before she could reply, Juurou turned and gestured.

"This room. It's very ostentatious, is it not? I've never liked the fancy dinner parties, but I must admit I've always appreciated the decor. But those cameras and monitors make it feel somewhat tacky, do they not? Whoever took us here either has very little taste or a very particular sense of humor. Most likely both."

Daiki whispered to Sachiko. "Don't take it to heart. I chatted with him a bit before you came to. He's just a little frosty."

That was an understatement and a half.

Before Juurou had time to notice he was being ignored, the huge double-doors burst open.

The girl who strutted in also had a penchant for wealth, but other than that, her personality could not have even come close to what Juurou's was. Before she even said a word, she exuded loud confidence and unrestrained energy. She strutted in, raising a hand to her mouth and uttering a shrill laugh.

"My my, Juurou, you say so little with so many words. Still, I suppose I am not one to be casting stones, am I?" She twirled, facing Sachiko who was starting to feel rather overwhelmed. "And you, my dear, are looking at Chikage Asai, the Ultimate Actress!"

Another name Sachiko knew. This woman had been on stage- both in plays and films- often as the leading ladies, performing in so many roles. She'd been villains, heroines, rich noblewomen and poor peasants. Without effort, she seemed to be able to transform herself into another persona in the blink of an eye.

And, when Sachiko blinked, the personality changed.

"I do hope we can get along." Chikage bowed, smiling politely, speaking incredibly formally. She had gone from a cackling noble to a maid before Sachiko had time to open her mouth.

"Ah… uhm…" She stuttered, before clearing her throat. "Nice to meet you…?"

"Chikage, maybe you should explain again…?" Daiki awkwardly butted in, giving Chikage a look. The woman flinched in surprise and for a moment, completely flubbed over her words.

"Uhm! I uh, that is to say, I… I'm acting- I mean I'm-" She nervously shook her head, her long hair swishing back and forth as she did. Finally, she spoke clearly, her voice a tiny whisper. "I'm bad at people. S-so I take my roles to t-talk. Mostly. S-sorry. I- I'm sorry…"

"Uh… It's fine! Really!" Sachiko grinned. "I mean I guess you can do what you want to do… I certainly couldn't act like that, although it'd be funny to watch me try I bet…"

Chikage's timidity dropped and she swirled into yet another role, this time of an overeager girl bursting with friendly energy, grabbing Sachiko's hand and shaking it wildly.

"Well, gosh that's like, so so nice of you to say! You just call me Chi, okay? I bet we're gonna be like, the bestest friends, yeah? Yeah!"

She released Sachiko and grinned ear-to-ear, still utterly in-character.

Sachiko felt her headache start to return. It was like talking to a dervish.

* * *

Adjacent to the dining hall was a large kitchen. Food and cooking implements of all kinds were there. Sachiko's stomach growled at the sights and smells and she flushed at how loud it was.

"Holy shit! Was that you?" A girl peered around a counter, and Sachiko's blush worsened. It was the tall, aggressive girl from earlier. She had calmed down a bit, and while still rough, seemed to be almost approachable. She was pretty intimidating though. She definitely looked like a delinquent. "Jesus, you must be hungry as shit. I'd say you should grab a bite but I dunno if any of this crap is safe."

Daiki strolled over to a wall and plucked a kitchen knife. Deftly twisting it in his palm he picked up an apple from a fruit bowl and spun the blade around it. In the blink of an eye, he had peeled the entire apple, with only a few flicks of skin left. Slowly, he put a bit of the peel in his mouth, chewing slowly. "...Tastes okay to me."

"Fuck!" The girl groaned. "That's _really_ stupid, ain't it?"

"If the people who took us here wanted to kill us I don't see why they'd lock us in a cell and leave us to wander this place unattended.

"It's still suspicious! All this crap here by itself? This food is fresh! It's fresh as I am awesome!"

Daiki shrugged, balancing the knife on his finger. "Well would you rather starve to death?"

Sachiko sighed. "Screw it." She muttered, grabbing another apple, sinking her teeth in with a loud cracking crunch. It was indeed fresh as the girl had said. After watching them eat, she pouted, but took an apple for herself and bit into it as well.

"So… Who're you?" She spoke through a mouthful of the fruit.

"Sachiko Homugi… Who are _you?_" Sachiko felt weirdly comfortable around the foulmouthed woman. Maybe it was the fact that she seemed so… open. The ominous leather jacket and jeans with holes in the knees made her look scary. She also had wildly messy, short pink hair (yes, pink). Despite the aggressive nature, she seemed kind of friendly.

"Mio Sakamoto!" She grinned. "But I also answer to "that crazy bitch" "hey fucker" and "what the shit are you doing?!" She paused for a moment, grinning wider at the sight of Sachiko and Daiki clearly trying their hardest to not crack up. "Oh I guess some people call me the Ultimate Brawler too."

Sachiko struggled to bite back her giggles. Daiki was having less luck and seemed to be stuffing the entire apple into his mouth to bite back laughter. "Um, Ultimate Brawler?"

"Yeah! Fighting. Like mixed martial arts but on the street and there are no rules and also sometimes people come at you with weapons." Mio cracked her knuckles. "But I was the best fighter! Nobody could beat me! Well, nobody I met. I'd bet there's people out there who can beat me, but not for long! I'm gonna be the best! The very best there ever fuckin' was!"

"You do look strong." Sachiko looked Mio up and down. She was obviously not quite as built as Katsuo, but she was still tall and powerful-looking.

"Hell yeah I am!" Mio grinned, grabbing an apple. With a swift jerk of her hand, she crushed it to the core in her palm. Daiki who had the misfortune of sitting closer to her than Sachiko was ended up being splattered by bits of the apple.

"Ah, geez!" He huffed, wiping apple pips from his face. "Show-off."

"Look who's talking. You're dressed like a fuckin clown." Mio cackled, turning to a sink to quickly rinse the pulped apple from her hands, while Daiki sulkily attempted to scrub some of the fruit from his uniform.

_Everyone here is… certainly unique._ Sachiko pondered as she finished her apple. _...They seem totally insane, but I mean, they're also all prodigies and geniuses… So I guess that'd make sense._

* * *

Daiki clearly wasn't expecting much when he leaned against the huge doors in the entrance hall. So, his started reaction to the massive double doors swung open without a hitch, and he tumbled forward outside with a little yelp.

Sachiko stepped out, cautiously, and her jaw dropped.

The sky was nowhere to be seen. Instead, the area above was… stone. Rock. The castle had a courtyard, with several high walls preventing any way out, and huge solid steel gates blocking paths that likely led beyond the walls. Although as far as Sachiko could tell, it wouldn't have mattered if the walls were there anyway, as…

"A cave?" Sachiko uttered, craning her head back. The roof of the cavern stretched tall, almost like a huge horizon. The walls prevented her from seeing where the edges of the cave truly was, so the actual scale of the place was an utter mystery. Feeling shaken, she turned on her heel to view the castle. It loomed ominously, with dark-colored and light colored stone opposing, like it was built from a huge checkerboard.

Sachiko was shaken from her daze by a yell, and a thud. Daiki and her turned, seeing a young man flat on his back by the wall. He looked pretty battered.

"Are you okay?" Sachiko rushed over, helping the poor boy up. He looked crushed, as he looked at the wall.

"I can't do it." He huffed. "I-I got a few feet up but it's too damn smooth… I just can't…" He straightened, brushing short brown hair aside, sweating slightly. "But if I can't climb it how else could we get out?"

"I can try." Daiki offered. "I _am_ an acrobat…." He approached the wall, studying it for any cracks, loose bits of stone he could use as handholds. After several minutes, he gripped some low rocks and started climbing, taking his time.

"It almost seemed doable until a few feet up…" The boy who had been climbing sighed, hands on his knees. "Then I slipped and fell. So I tried again. Then fell again. That's been my day so far." He smiled, forcing it, glancing at Sachiko.

"Hey, hey. What's your Talent? Anything about breaking out of castles? Like Ultimate Escape Room Master or something?"

"I wish." Sachiko sighed. "I got picked in a _lottery_. That's about it."

"Oh yeah. I heard of that! I guess Hope's Peak does that every year. Still, you must be pretty excited! You're pretty much set once you graduate…"

"Maybe." Sachiko looked pointedly at the castle.

"Uh… I guess once we get out of here…" He grinned, less forced this time, resting a fist on his hip. "Anyway… Oh! Names! I forgot! I'm Ren Suda! Pleased to meetcha!"

Sachiko tried to figure out Ren's talent without him telling her, but she was a bit at a loss. He was an athlete for sure, but he was far more lithe and wiry than most. Maybe he was a runner? He did have running shorts and a t-shirt on, so it would make sense…

Ren seemed embarrassed by her stare, and cleared his throat. "Um… I'm the Ultimate Triathlete if you were curious…"

"Triathlete?" Sachiko blinked, puzzled.

"Yeah! Running, Cycling and Swimming! It's like a marathon but with all three of those! A long distance race over land and water!" Ren pumped his fists, bursting with energy. Sachiko could practically feel it radiating off of him.

"But not a climber, huh?" She teased, grinning. Ren laughed it off.

"Guess not. It was worth a try. I thought if I could see over the wall we could figure out where we are…"

Before the conversation could continue, there was a shout, and suddenly Daiki crashed into the ground between them. He'd made it a bit higher than Ren, but not much.

"The wall!" He blurted, sitting up and pointing. The students jerked their gaze up in time to see. About nine feet above the ground, the wall suddenly had pushed out a block of stone, which it was rapidly retracting. It had suddenly shot out, sending Daiki flying.

"Are you okay?" Sachiko barely held back her fear. Luckily, Daiki seemed fine, although he remained on the ground.

"My pride hurts." He grumbled. "...And my butt."

"What's going on?" A duo who had been exploring the other side of the courtyard approached. Right away, Sachiko could tell they were related. Eyes, hair, and basic facial structure was similar. Their styles were quite different though.

"Are you guys brother and sister?"

"No." The boy deadpanned. "We just look and sound exactly alike because fate has it out for us."

The girl punched his shoulder. "Hiroto! Be nice!"

He huffed, shaking his head. "Everyone asks us that. _Everyone_. Fine. We're siblings. I'm Hiroto Harada and the bratty one is Chitose."

Chitose gave her brother a look and a light push, before turning to face Sachiko. "Sorry, we didn't get a chance to meet you properly when we were introducing ourselves to everyone else."

"Oh um, it's alright. My name is Sachiko." Sachiko wondered if there were more creative ways for her to tell people her name.

Hiroto huffed a bit, arms crossed. Chitose glared at her brother and his attitude wilted, and his expression softened a bit.

"S-sorry. Um. I'm just… bugged about everything right now."

"I guess I can't blame you…" Sachiko looked at the huge walls. "This is… This is a lot… I keep thinking I'm about to start screaming and panicking and running into things but then I don't…"

"You seem fine to me." Chitose nudged her glasses, pursing her lips. "Are you tenser than you're letting on?"

"_Absolutely._" Sachiko gripped at her own shoulders in a sort of self-hug, granting what little security she could manage to give herself.

"Ah geez… And I thought I was tightly wound…" Hiroto raised an eyebrow.

"You seem even more wound up than when I talked to you twenty minutes ago." Ren tipped his head. "What's up?"

"It's the rock. I can't figure out what it is." Hiroto gestured, pointing straight up. "I've never encountered a cavern like this, or stones like the ones this castle is made of. I could be mistaken, but… I think that the cave is fake…"

"Fake?"

"Yep. You've got the Ultimate Geologist's word on that. Man-made."

"Plus, even though we're in a cave, its not damp or cold at all." Chitose butted in, hands flailing a bit. "There's no fungus or 'shrooms anywhere…"

"Mushrooms?" Sachiko blinked. "Oh, is that your talent?"

"Yep yep! I'm the Ultimate Mycologist! I study spores, molds and fungus! Well, mostly fungi. It's just a little joke." Chitose smiled. "If you see any, let me know, okay? I wanna know what sorts might grow down here…"

"If there are any…" Hiroto shook his head. "There's plenty of rocks around here, so at least I'm not useless. If Chitose found any mushrooms I bet she'd only be concerned if whether or not they were safe to eat."

Chitose put her brother in a headlock, aggressively giving him a noogie. "I'll show you useless, ya little…!"

"Ow, ow! Damn it, I swear if you don't let me go I'll bite you!"

"...I still haven't figured out if they hate each other, or what…" Sachiko watched them fight, eyebrows raised.

"No biting! Ow! _I said no biting!"_

Daiki watched, amused, but a bit concerned. "Should we… do anything?"

"I'd rather not get bitten." Sachiko crossed her arms.

"If it gets any worse I can break it up." Ren gave Sachiko a thumbs up. "Don't worry, I'll make sure they don't kill each other."

Sachiko felt a weird prickle creeping down her neck.

* * *

Heading back inside, most of the ground floor of the castle appeared to be somewhat unremarkable. Lots of fancy rooms for just sitting around in, but little of interest. The rooms didn't appear to have much in them aside from comfy furniture. There was a large, red door, but it was sealed up, as well as a black-and-white door opposite it. Deeper in the castle however, there was a spiral staircase in a large central room.

"This is getting absurd." Daiki grumbled, as he began pulling himself up the steps, gripping the railing. Sachiko tagged along, doing a mental headcount. Thus far she had met nine of the other students. That would mean there were six more…

The second floor had two split halls leading in either direction. Daiki spread his arms.

"Well, where shall we go first? Left or right? East or west?"

Sachiko looked back and forth, picking at random. "Let's head… left."

The left hall led to a single door. When Sachiko opened it, she noticed the room had an uncanny resemblance to the room where the dorms had been. Instead of nameplates, however, each door was decorated with a symbol. She could see things like a weight, a mushroom, a fist, a calculator…

"Huh. Sixteen rooms. I'm guessing these are for us."

"Yep-yep." Daiki bobbed his head. "I'm guessing the one with the circus top is mine… And I bet the dice is yours."

Sachiko approached the door Daiki indicated, pausing.

"Um… There's no handle." She frowned.

"Huh, really? Why include a door we can't open? Is this like some kind of weird escape-room?" Daiki crossed his arms.

"There's a little pad thingy with a scanner-thing on it. Kind of like those hotel rooms where you just tap a keycard against a door to open it…"

"Well that's nifty." Daiki frowned. "Still seems uh… What's the word… Like it doesn't fit?"

"Incongruous? Unfitting? Anachronistic?" A smooth voice spoke, causing both of them to jump Sachiko turned, skin crawling at the oily voice.

The man it belonged to was oily-looking too. He had slicked hair, calculating eyes and a small smile that oozed insincerity and self-assuredness. It was like he radiated confidence- but it wasn't like Mio or Ren's natural confidence. It was more like a smug self-satisfaction that screamed "I think I'm better than everyone around me."

"Kouji. How'd you get in here so quietly?" Daiki let out a low breath, clearly relieved it was another student.

He almost seemed to slither as he walked. "Easily. The door appears to be able to open totally silently. Quite odd for how old it looks, but very interesting."

Kouji turned his attention to Sachiko and he offered a hand. "Kouji Hoga. Ultimate Philosopher. A pleasure."

Sachiko tentatively took his hand. For some reason, she had expected Kouji's hand to feel… cold. But it was normal. Warm as any person's. It was a small relief.

"Sachiko. Erm, sorry if this sounds dumb, but how exactly do you become the "ultimate" philosopher?"

"Why, through rigorous study of the philosophical advances of the past, and applying your own thoughts and logic to it." Kouji smiled wider. There was a bit of delight in his voice as he continued. "I could explain it in more detail, but it would take a while. Philosophy is often a confusing and difficult subject to begin, but it's utterly marvelous to research and learn more about. I do hope you'll indulge me some other time…" He chuckled then, and it made Sachiko feel like running away.

He turned around, and for a moment his smug composure dropped like a rock as he found himself face-to-face with a girl whose eyes were harshly narrowed. Kouji jumped, before quickly attempting to play it off smooth, straightening his uniform.

"Ah-!" He cleared his throat, trying to hide the fact that his voice cracked. "Miss Saito… I ah, didn't hear you. These doors really are quiet."

The woman rolled her eyes, though her expression remained a bit chilly. "I told you to call me Izumi."

"Erm…" Sachiko awkwardly cleared her throat. "Is something wrong?"

"No." She bluntly tipped her head. "At least not specific. I assume you mean aside from anything obvious… but there is no immediate danger."

Sachiko fiddled with a curl of her hair. Maybe this girl just had a naturally harsh expression and voice. Before she could say anything else, the girl extended a hand, formally.

"Izumi Saito. And you?"

"S-sachiko Homugi." She took the proffered hand. She was a bit stronger than she looked. This student seemed poised and elegant, but it was also very intimidating.. Daiki grinned sardonically.

"The Ultimate Fencer, right? I'm trying to keep everyone straight- kinda hard to match names when you gotta learn fifteen at once."

"That's correct." Izumi nodded curtly. Sachiko glanced about until she spotted a door with a pair of long, slender swords emblazoned upon it.

"I guess that'd be yours then… Was this place planned for us?"

"To a degree it would appear that way…" Izumi's frown deepened. "Great lengths have been taken for this. The rooms downstairs with our names, and the rooms up here with symbols for our talents…"

Kouji looked a bit miffed. "They're also in the same positions. I checked a moment ago." He gestured to a room with a silhouetted head. "I had to use process of elimination, but this room matches up with the dorm that has my name on it…"

Izumi sucked at her knuckles, deep in thought. "Curious. The resources required to prepare this place would have to be immense, especially for us…"

"And!" Daiki added, looking down. "I just noticed the floor. That's the Hope's Peak Crest!"

Sachiko looked down as well. The large circular rug did indeed have the crest, but…

"Why would it be that? This place definitely isn't Hope's Peak Academy. I live within walking distance, I see the building all the time…" Her eyes widened. "Unless this is associated…"

"Why would they send us here without so much as a by-your-leave?" Kouji paced the room in a slow, wide circle.

"Bah-ha-ha! Why so worried?" A deep voice boomed. Once again, Kouji jumped in shock and was forced to recover. The man who entered was jovial-looking, with a messy stubbly face, short cut hair and a heavyset frame. He grinned widely. "We're clearly in a place Hope's Peak set up! They wouldn't do anything crazy like hurt us!"

"I'm not so sure…" Daiki pursed his lips. "It might be their creation, but us being here might not be their doing. If it was, we would remember how we got here…"

"Bah! I'm sure we'll put it together!" The stocky man waved Daiki off, before turning to Sachiko with a big grin. "Glad you're back on your feet! You looked ready to have a fit earlier!"

"I uh, um…" She stuttered.

"You gotta speak up! Give yourself confidence!" He boomed suddenly, thumping a fist against the side of his head. "Take it from me! Gorou Kubo!"

Izumi rolled her eyes. "I thought you were an archer, not a motivational speaker."

Gorou bellowed with laughter as if it were the funniest joke he'd been told. Sachiko's ears were ringing. He wasn't even yelling, that was just how big and loud his voice was. She'd always thought that an archer would be a lot more reserved. Even Izumi, who Sachiko had assumed was mostly unflappable seemed a bit put off by the sheer volume and energy radiating from him.

* * *

Also on the second floor was a large library. Huge tall cases filled with books lined the walls, and Two girls were there. Both had glasses on, but other than that they couldn't be more different. One was stoney faced and had a harsh glare in her red eyes, and turned the gaze to Sachiko, who felt a bit rooted to the spot. She had been flipping through some of the books when Daiki and Sachiko entered.

"Heya Atsuko. Have time for an introduction?" Daiki sounded a bit tentative, like he was on eggshells around this girl.

The girl, Atsuko stood from the table. She was about Sachiko's height, with her hair bound into a messy bun. She was very prim looking.

"Who's this then?"

"Oh um…" Sachiko gave a formal little bow. "Sachiko Homugi… Nice to meet you."

"Hm." The woman frowned a bit. "Atsuko Sasaki. I am the Ultimate Librarian. So long as you do not disrespect these books, I'm sure we will get along fine."

"That shouldn't be a problem… I love books." Sachiko smiled a bit. Atsuko's harsh eyes didn't soften, but a thin smile played about her lips.

"Excellent."

"What do you think of this library, anyway?" Daiki asked, looking around. "It's huge…"

"It is indeed. However it is vastly disorganized. The books here do not seem to be sorted either alphabetically or by the Decimal system…" Atsuko looked about. "Particularly strange, since this place appears to be owned by Hope's Peak Academy. You would think they have _some _system…" Atsuko blushed faintly. "I ah, came to seek clues, but I wound up just starting to organize the books instead…"

"Oh…" The second girl, who had been curiously studying the bookshelves turned. She was short, though not nearly as short as Haruki had been, and also notably curvier than the other girls. Sachiko generally tried to avoid comparing herself to others, but she had to admit it was hard keeping her eyes on the girl's face. She looked… distant. Out of it. "Should I say my name too…? Is this the part where I do that?"

"If you would like?" Sachiko wasn't sure what to make of her.

"Ummm…" She trailed off for a moment, playing with her long ungroomed hair. "I'm Ayano Nakamura… I'm the… Ultimate Illustrator…"

"Illustrator? Like drawing?" Sachiko asked curiously. For a moment, Ayano didn't answer, staring into the distance before snapping back to reality.

"Huhn? Oh! Oh um, yes! Sort of. I draw what is described to me, or from a reference generally… I'm not good at making art from my own head so I just illustrate what people tell me… I guess I could be the Ultimate Sketch artist too? But I guess that's not accurate so maybe not…"

_She seems a bit… all over the place_. Sachiko thought. _Is she going to be okay?_

"Ummmmmmm…" Ayano sucked on a finger for a long pause, eyes momentarily glazing over before snapping back to reality. "I hope we'll be friends…"

"Me too." Sachiko smiled, feeling almost lethargic. Something about Ayano's sleepy nature was almost infectious. Before they could speak further, there was a loud clatter and banging around the other side of the shelves. Everyone turned, and a rather dazed looking young man staggered out. He was small and had a rather petulant look on his face.

"Okay, that was a bad idea…"

"What did you do?!" Atsuko growled aggressively, hostility flashing in her gaze. The young man squeaked a bit, trying to hide behind Sachiko, who was nearest.

"Don't be mad!" He peeked around her. "I was trying to get a big stack of books down like you asked and just sort of tipped over and crashed everywhere…"

Atsuko huffed, storming over to the pile of books that had spilled. The young man hopped away from Sachiko, seeming rather relieved, with a playful smirk.

"Hey, hey, who're you then? Sachiko? That's what I heard."

"Uh… Yes?" Sachiko blinked at how fast he went from timid to friendly. The man grinned wider, offering a hand.

"Hideyoshi Ogasawara! I'm the Ultimate Mathematician!"

_That's an awfully pretentious name_. Sachiko thought, taking his hand and-

"_Agh!_" She jerked back, as a sudden sharp tingle filled her hand. "Jeez!"

"Oops." He grinned. When shaking her hand he had suddenly jammed his ring finger into her palm, making it almost feel like he'd zapped her. "Static shock I guess."

Daiki was having a little giggle fit. Clearly he'd seen or experienced the prank before himself and was filled with mirth upon seeing it inflicted again. Sachiko pouted but silently conceded that he'd surprised her.

"Sorry~" Hideyoshi chuckled. "I do that to most people I meet. Gotta know how good their sense of humor is. Pranks are only funny if everyone can have a laugh at it."

"I almost thought the Ultimate Mathematician would be more…"

"Of a tight-ass? A snooty smarmy git? We already have two of those, we don't need a third. Let people be pretentious, I just wanna have fun." He shrugged, a childish little smirk on his face.

"I think it's funny." Daiki grinned. "So obviously you're doing something right."

Before they could talk further, a sound filled the air.

**Ding-Dong Bing-Bong**

"Is that… a school bell?" Sachiko frowned.

"Mmm? Monitors…" Ayano pointed at one of the same monitors that had been in every other room so far. The black screen flickered, and a silhouetted form appeared on it. Sachiko couldn't make out any details, but then the voice came echoing out.

"Testing, testing! Hello! You all can hear me? Puhuhuhu… Attention Ultimate Students! This is an announcement!"

Sachiko felt an icy chill creep over her. The voice was carefree, friendly, almost cute, but… Something about it was setting off every danger instinct she had.

"It's time for the opening ceremony! You want answers? I bet you do! Well, you can find them all if you come join us in the gathering hall on the first floor. It's the black-and-white double doors in the main hall! See you all soon!"

And with that, the monitor switched off.

Sachiko nervously gripped her hands together.

Ayano was frowning, clearly frightened.

Hideyoshi looked pale.

Daiki looked similarly put off, but he tried to hide it. "Shall we go…?"

"We um, don't seem to have a choice." Sachiko frowned deeply. "I really don't like the sound of that. This sounds really dangerous… But I guess we gotta go."

"D-don't worry…" Hideyoshi forced a smile. "I bet it's just uh, some kind of weird act to get us all wound up… I'm sure we'll find out what's happening soon…"

Atsuko emerged from behind the bookshelves, similarly unsettled, but she was more composed. "Come then. Let's go."

Slowly, they trickled out of the library, making their way to the gathering hall…

* * *

**Guys this is 22 pages i think i'm gonna cut it here for now**

**Hope you enjoyed. In the next chapter, which is I guess also going to be the prologue, just the second half, a familiar face shows.**

**Feel free to leave a review**

**Goodnight everybody!**


	2. Prologue Part 2

**Okay not a lot to say let's actually finish the prologue.**

**Enjoy.**

* * *

**Prologue Part Two**

The sixteen students nervously milled about the room they had been directed to. The "gathering hall". It was large, oval-shaped, with a large balcony overlooking the room from above. Above it all was the Hope's Peak crest, glaring down at them.

"So… This is the place?" Hiroto frowned. "I don't see anyone here. If this is a joke it's a really stupid one."

Mio cracked her knuckles. "Hey! Who the fuck called us here?!"

Her powerful voice rung through the room, so harsh it silenced the others for a moment. The silence hung, before being broken.

"Suspicious." It was a single word, but Juurou succinctly described the whole day. "Perhaps this is some kind of trap…"

Katsuo stomped forward a bit, shielding as many of the others with his bulk as possible. "Stay close." He grunted.

The nerve-wracking silence continued. Sachiko opened her mouth to voice her fear, but before she could, a voice sliced through the air.

"Puhuhuhu…! I see everyone has gathered! I suppose it's time to roll out the red carpet and welcome you all!"

"W-who is that?" Sachiko cast her gaze about.

"It sounded like it came from above." Izumi looked up. The others followed her gaze to the balcony above. It was dark, save for a dimly glowing red light, shining in the air.

"Welcome…" There was a loud mechanical sound, and the balcony was lit up with a spotlight, illuminating the source of the red glow.

A large black-and-white teddy bear, perched in a throne-like chair, in a high balcony above the students.

"Welcome to your new school life!"

There was a pause.

"What. The hell. Is that." Kouji stared in disbelief. "What am I _looking_ at?"

"Well I don't know about you, but _I'm_ looking at the newest attendees of Hope's Peak Academy's secret course!" The bear cackled, hopping up from the throne to stand on the railing. "I am Monokuma! And this very special place you find yourselves lost in is Hope's Peak's very own Ultimate Research Facility!"

Sachiko's mind was reeling. Monokuma? Research Facility? What?

"...Is this a joke?" Hideyoshi nervously giggled. "Because, like, I'm waiting for the punchline and it's not adding up."

With a nimble hop, the bear suddenly popped off the railing and… crashed face-first into the floor. He rose, wobbling a little, unsteady, attempting to shrug off his tumble.

"Of course it isn't a joke!" Monokuma almost sounded offended. "Now then, I'm sure you're all very confused. It's in your faces. Cheer up you sad sacks! You're at what was one of the most prestigious positions to be in!"

"_Was_?" Daiki raised an eyebrow.

Monokuma giggled. "Puhuhuhu… I can't say yet. That would ruin the fun!" He had an odd, waddling walk, and was surprisingly expressive…

"What are you?" Daiki demanded, an interrogatory tone to his voice.

Monokuma waved him off. "I am Monokuma! The Headmaster of this research facility!"

Daiki huffed, pinching his nose. "Okay, okay, fine then, "headmaster"..." He clearly didn't believe that at all. "What the hell is this "research" facility and why are we here?"

Monokuma spun about and faced all the students. "Well, you sixteen were hand-picked to take part in a special experimental situation! One that is even more prestigious and honorable than even being a graduate of Hope's Peak!"

The bear's smile seemed to widen as he tipped his head down.

"Well, that's what you were supposed to be doing, but man, what a dumb idea. You kids don't need more handouts! You need some proper hardship! Children today can't learn anything if they don't overcome adversity!"

"So this… isn't what Hope's Peak had planned?" Sachiko hugged herself awkwardly.

"Well of course not!" The bear leaned in. "I couldn't _bear_ such a boring plan, so I thought it'd be fun if I were to spice things up…"

He turned on his heel, trotting around the sixteen in a slow circle. "Ordinarily, you would have been brought here with full knowledge of this, but we decided to cut out the middleman and just bring you here directly without telling you! So… You're welcome! I saved you a few hours of extra paperwork! Instead, you just get a few minutes of extra exposition!"

"Enough!" Atsuko snapped, staring at the bear with icy composure. "You want something from us. Spit it out."

"Want…?" The bear stopped for a moment. He stared Atsuko down. Monokuma's voice dropped any semblance of playfulness or carefree. His next words were icy and cold.

"I want you to kill each other."

The room was filled with dead silence.

"I… k-kill each other…?" Hideyoshi hugged himself awkwardly, eyes wide. "If… if this is a joke… then it's not very funny…"

"Oh dear… This must be a performance…" Chikage floundered. "I haven't even been handed a script… This surely is a mistake. Nobody would put on a show without inviting me… would they…?"

"I'm not joking about this! It's the newest experiment! If you want to leave this place, you need to kill someone and make it through…" A drumroll echoed from somewhere in the room, and Monokuma leapt upwards. "...The class trial! My favorite part!"

Monokuma raised his paws and a curtain drew back, revealing a monitor, with little cartoon kids displayed on it. "If one of you commits a murder, then a class trial will begin! Here, you fight amongst yourselves and vote for the Blackened killer!" He gestured and the screen changed. "If you choose correctly, then you all get to live… except the Blackened! They get punished. Executed! Dead! Boom!" He threw his head back and cackled.

"But if you choose the wrong person, then I'll execute everyone beside the Blackened! And they will go free, to see the outside world once again!"

"What the hell?! What the- what-" Chitose was a stuttering mess. She flailed her arms. "What do- do you actually mean-"

Monokuma giggled, voice dripping with glee. "Yep! I mean it! It doesn't matter how, when or why! By hook or by crook, I want you to do your best and _kill each other!_"

"Enough!" Mio leapt forward suddenly, whirling her fists at lightning speed. She whipped a massive haymaker towards Monokuma. From somewhere on her person, she had produced a set of brass knuckles, and had every intention of putting them to use.

Any semblance of clumsy awkwardness vanished from the bear in an instant. Monokuma moved so fast Sachiko could barely keep up with him, dodging the swing. Mio's reaction time had to be appreciated however, as she spun quickly, keeping pace with the bear, unleashing a torrent of punches and kicks. Monokuma bobbed and weaved through the flurry of blows raising his paws and revealing long, slightly curved metal claws.

Mio jerked her fists up, catching the sharp claws on the metal of her knuckle dusters, blocking them. "Hold still you little shit!"

Before she could swing again though, a huge form loomed up behind Monokuma and swatted him aside, sending him spinning. Katsuo stood alongside Mio, stance wide.

"No one is killing anyone. Whatever sick game you're playing, I'll take no part of it."

"Hi-YA!" Ren leapt high, whirling his powerful legs and spiking the bear into the floor. He landed close to Mio and Katsuo, grinning. "You don't have a chance!"

The three shared a knowing look, quickly forming a silent alliance, and spread out, flanking Monokuma from three sides.

The bear rose up smoothly. The three slowed in their approach when they realized he was laughing. "Puhuhuhuh… Violence against Headmaster Monokuma is not allowed. But I suppose you three didn't know that, or about what happens to rulebreakers, so maybe I can let you off the hook this time."

A low mechanical rumble echoed through the gym. It was rhythic, steady, and growing louder.

"Even if you _could_ destroy me," Monokuma continued. "I have _plenty_ of spares! So that would be pretty pointless. Such a waste of youth, to spend so much of your time fighting me…"

The doors in back opened, and Sachiko gasped. Dozens of Monokumas marched in, swiftly filling the room, encircling all of the students. They all spoke in unison.

"And a waste of _life._"

Mio's fists were curled tightly, and she was trembling. It was clear that she was barely holding herself in check. The huge circle of Monokumas all cackled madly.

"Ahahahahaha! Now do you understand? You _can't_ defy me without some serious consequences... You can't reason with me, understand me, convince me, cajole me… We bears are very stubborn after all! There's no point asking me how or why, because all I want is for you to kill!"

"This has to be a bad dream." Haruki mumbled, furiously chewing on her nails. "It's all a dream and when I wake up I'll be safe at home and crazy teddy bears won't be telling me to kill people…"

"I'm not a teddy bear…" Monokuma growled. The small army of bear robots lined up and shifted, displaying startling coordination as they formed a sort of stairway back up to the balcony from which the original had descended. Marching up the ramp of Monokumas, the first one to appear walked back up to the top of the balcony. The army slid to the floor, and dispersed, marching out the door the way they had come.

"Now then, before we truly begin your new school lives here, there's some things that need to be handed out!" Monokuma vanished behind the railing of the balcony for a moment. He could be heard clattering about noisily. Without warning, large, thick packages flew out. From the loud clattering they made, whatever was inside was heavy and dense. Monokuma scrambled back into his chair.

"Each of you should have a package with your name and Talent on them. Don't just stand there, pick them up!"

There was a nervous pause, before the sixteen approached, slowly picking up the packages, while Monokuma continued.

"In each envelope is a Student E-Handbook, and a special ID card! The E-Handbook contains the rules of this school, as well as a notepad for your own use, a map of the school and a bunch of other useful stuff! If I was a pack of bright young talents like yourselves, _I would make the rules very familiar to myself._" Monokuma's tone darkened. "After all, It'd be such a shame if I had to punish you before any of you even had the chance to kill someone…" He shuffled in his seat. "The ID card is used to enter your Ultimate Lab, as well as your personal room. Don't lose them, or you could be locked out of your bedroom! And that would be awful. You'd be a sitting duck for a potential murderer until we finished making a new one for you…"

Sachiko shivered. Every word that oozed from the bear's mouth made her despise him and fear him more. Monokuma chuckled nastily.

"Well, I guess that's all from me for now. It's getting a bit late, so why don't you all get some rest. You'll need to be bright-eyed and bushy-tailed if you wanna get the first kill!" And with that, he dropped below the railing and vanished from sight.

The air was still.

Nobody moved.

Sachiko realized she had stopped breathing, and took in a shaky gasping breath. That seemed to stir the others.

"So…" Gorou rubbed his fist slowly. "...What… what should we do?"

"Um… What?" Ayano tilted her head.

"I mean… can we… even take this seriously?" He chewed his lip. "Would any of us… kill each other?"

"Surely not! No-one would have such dark designs as to lay their hands on a fair innocent maiden like myself…?" Chikage trembled, clasping her hands.

"Of course not…!" Daiki nervously waved his hands. "Right? R-right? I…" He paused, seeing all the dark looks on everyone's faces, and his hands slowly dropped to his sides. "I… sorry. Let's try something practical then. Why don't we read the rules he made?"

"Ahh, fuck..." Mio frowned. "I mean… He's got an army of himself right? I guess it makes sense…"

Sachiko carefully examined the e-handbook. It was like a tablet, but far thicker and denser. The card was also quite dense. It seemed to be made of some kind of thin metal. For now, Sachiko pressed the button.

**STUDENT HANDBOOK**

**HOPE'S PEAK ACADEMY SPECIAL COURSE**

**SACHIKO HOMUGI, ULTIMATE LUCKY STUDENT.**

That wasn't anything new to her. Sachiko navigated the menu, until she found the page labeled "School Regulations".

**1: Violence against Headmaster Monokuma is strictly prohibited, as is destruction of cameras and monitors.**

**2: **"**Nighttime" is from 10pm to 7am. During this time, the Gathering Hall, Dining Hall and Courtyard will be locked and further entry will not be allowed.**

**3: With limited restrictions, Students are allowed to explore the castle at their discretion.**

**4: Some areas of the castle are temporarily locked off due to construction. Entering these areas is dangerous and will be considered a rule violation.**

**5: Anyone who kills a fellow student will become "Blackened" and will graduate unless discovered.**

**6: Once a murder takes place, a class trial will take place. Participation is mandatory.**

**7: If the guilty party is exposed during the class trial, they alone will be executed.**

**8: If they are not exposed, all other students will be executed and the Blackened will go free.**

**9: The Blackened may only kill a maximum of two people per trial.**

**10: Violation of any and all regulations will result in execution.**

**Further regulations may be added at any time.**

Sachiko raised her head slowly. She felt a little bit dizzy and very much afraid.

"I don't… I don't understand anything." She admitted shakily. Juurou scowled.

"We have been imprisoned in a strange place, with no knowledge of how we arrived here, or why we were brought. We cannot take anything we learn for granted, but we cannot trust everything we are told wholesale."

Gorou grunted. "You're talking sense. We shouldn't just do what that stupid bear said. But we can't ignore it, right? I mean…"

Sachiko looked around. Everyone was wary, suspicious, worried, afraid, but it was clear nobody knew who to trust.

She… wanted to trust these people. She did. But knowing what she did, and with those regulations and the words that Monokuma had uttered… She wasn't even sure if she could trust herself.

"_I want you to kill each other._"

Sachiko suddenly realized how scared she really was.

"Well…" Daiki thoughtfully laced his fingers behind his head. "Maybe we should check out the dorms and the labs upstairs first. For now, why don't we all stick together? If we're all in a big group we might feel safer."

"Good idea!" Gorou slapped Daiki's back with a laugh. "I like the way you think! Any objections?"

Nobody voiced complaint.

* * *

With their resolve bolstered a tiny bit, the group trickled out of the gathering hall and made their way to the dorms. Sachiko walked over to the door with her name and what was admittedly a rather cute little representation of herself on the plate.

"Do I really have a little hair-antennae like that…?" She murmured, before opening the door.

The room was actually pretty comfortable. There was a monitor, but oddly no camera in the room. Additionally, there was a large soft-looking bed, a table with a lamp on it, and a connected bathroom. The bathroom was nice too, and had a washing machine and dryer on the floor. Otherwise though the room was unremarkable. She opened the door and stepped out.

"Well that was a total waste of time." Hiroto grumbled. Chitose gave him a soft push.

"I don't know about that. After all, we know that our rooms are nice and comfy at least. Did you check the closet though?"

"Yeah. Weird."

"I missed it." Sachiko walked over to them while waiting for the others. "What's up?"

"Lots of copies of our clothes." Chitose pursed her lips. "It was bizarre. Loads of dresses just like the one I have now… Except with the Hope's Peak Crest. I know a lot of us already have little pins or patches with that, but the dresses in the closet had the crest as part of the actual pattern, just on the breast pocket. So weird."

"There's not much else though in that room." Hiroto scoffed. "Just sheets for the bed, little notepad for writing on, and a bathroom. No cameras though."

"And soundproof." Atsuko had her ear pressed to Ayano's door. "I was curious, so I asked her to help me test it… The doors and walls are almost totally soundproof. The only way to get someone's attention is with the doorbells."

"That's… eerie." Sachiko frowned nervously. "...Having a soundproof room would be pretty nice in almost any other situation…"

"I suppose it would give me plenty of time to read my books." Atsuko straightened, ringing the doorbell. Ayano poked her head out.

"Anything?"

"No sound at all. Thank you for your help."

"Okay." Ayano suddenly ducked back into her room.

"I think she's a bit overloaded." Sachiko frowned a bit. "She looked a little worn out."

"She's a bit weird." Hiroto bluntly remarked. "But I don't blame her for needing a minute alone."

It took awhile for everyone to regroup.

"Well that wasn't the best use of our time…" Izumi crossed her arms. "I guess we check the labs now?"

Everyone stayed together, heading up the steps…

* * *

"You have got to be kidding me." Sachiko rolled her eyes. Her "lab" was more like a casino. Cards, dice, slots, roulette. All tests of luck. She idly grabbed a set of dice and tossed them onto the table.

"...Eleven. I don't know if that's supposed to count for anything." Sachiko raised her head. "How do you even measure luck?"

The question went unanswered. There was little else in the room of interest, other than a small board to write results on. She shook her head and stepped out. The other doors were closed, presumably with the students inside them. One was open ajar however. Judging by the large book on the door, it was Atsuko's lab.

Sachiko approached, rapping twice on the open door.

"Yes? Come in." Atsuko called, sounding rather brusque. Sachiko peered in.

"Um, sorry. The door was cracked…"

"Yes. I generally prefer to not close doors behind me." Atsuko waved a dismissive hand. The Librarian lab was dimly lit. There were a lot of files, folders, books, and various forms of reference materials. A large poster had what Sachiko could only guess was the Dewey Decimal System fully listed upon it, and the walls were lined with crammed books.

"This room seems at least a little more organized than the actual library…" Sachiko frowned. "My lab's a mess."

"Oh, this was a mess as well. I sorted it."

"A-already?" Sachiko blinked in shock. Atsuko wasn't an ultimate for nothing, she supposed…

* * *

Eventually, everyone met up in the dining hall. Even in a place like this, people still get hungry. Gorou's loud voice boomed out. "So only we can get into our own labs?"

"Rather, only we can unlock them." Juuro corrected. "Anyone can enter, but only the person who the lab is set up for may unlock the door from outside."

"That makes me worry." Gorou frowned. "There's some dangerous things in my lab. I don't want anyone to get in there…"

"Mine too." Daiki admitted. "Maybe we should do an inventory? Just so we know… If we know where everything comes from, it might discourage anyone feeling like doing something stupid."

"Good idea!" Ren nodded. "I've got a bunch of track-and-field gear in my lab. Treadmills and hurdles and stuff. There's not really anything dangerous exactly."

"I'm sure someone creative could figure something out." Kouji chuckled humorlessly, idly poking at his food. "My room has a number of books and some busts of famous philosophers. Pity it couldn't be anyone creative… Ah, but uh, putting that aside, they might be dangerous. They're heavy."

"I've got a _shit-ton_ of dangerous stuff in my room." Mio crossed her arms. "Big fuckin surprise huh? Spikes, bats, bats with spikes, chains… The kinda shit you might see a delinquent biker gang wave around."

"The stage is set~!" Chikage leapt up suddenly, one foot on the table, balancing precariously. "Dress clothes of all kinds! Scripts, costumes, makeup, cameras~! Fake weapons for scenes but nothing deadly, surely… That is the truth behind the lab of the ultimate actor~!" She turned to the looming man next to her. "What say you? What lurks within your lab?"

"A lot of weights." Katsuo bluntly stated. "Heavy and dangerous. But if you ever need some protein powder, please let me know. I am happy to share."

"Awh, sweet." Ren grinned toothily.

Juuro clicked his tongue, shaking his head mockingly. He held back his vitriol however, and spoke. "I've a number of musical instruments. If someone tries to use them as a weapon I may kill them myself before that Monokuma does. They're valuable. There's also a great many pages of sheet music, but I doubt you could weaponise that."

"I have books." Atsuko crossed her arms.

"That's it…?" Chitose frowned.

"That's it."

"Huh. I have some books, but- surprise! They're all about mushrooms… Oh and a big supply of actual mushrooms too! Uh… Most of them are harmless, but there are some really poisonous ones… And a few that won't hurt you but you shouldn't eat because they're hallucinogenic."

"As if you haven't eaten them before." Hiroto muttered. This time, he had the good sense to duck just as Chitose threw a punch. "I have rock samples and magnifying glasses and some other geology gear. Most of it's too small to be weaponized easily."

"I have fencing equipment. It's all totally harmless however."

"_Harmless? _They're _swords!_" Gorou blurted. Izumi smiled for the first time since Sachiko met her.

"Hardly. None of them are edged or tipped. Fencing is actually a fairly safe sport." Izumi explained. "I am a fencer, not a swordswoman."

"Oh, uh, I see. All the arrows and bows in my room are real ones, so I guess I expected it to be the same." Gorou sheepishly rubbed the back of his head.

"I could test them on you." Izumi noted. There was an awkward silence. "T-that… That was an attempt at humor. I apologize."

The pause lingered, before Gorou guffawed loudly. "Ha! So she has a sense of humor after all! EXCELLENT!"

Hideyoshi giggled, getting right into the flow of things. "Oh good. That means I can prank- ah-hem. Nothing too interesting in my room. Loads of paper, textbooks, calculators. There's this real old old abacus in there that's pretty cool…"

Ayano stared into space for a moment, before realizing that she was next. The students were seemingly just going around the table.

"Oh. I'm sorry… I was thinking about abacuses. There's a lot of paper and drawing supplies. There's some scissors in there too. No running." Ayano trailed off, eyes glazing over again as she spaced out again. She was probably thinking about scissors now.

"Um… My lab is pretty safe." Sachiko shrugged. "I guess you could run into a table corner."

Daiki grimaced. "Wish I could say the same. Throwing and juggling knives, all kinds of trapeze ropes, flammable sticks for twirling… My room's pretty dangerous actually… At least everything there is flashy and obvious."

"I have a lot of hypnosis stuff." Haruki smiled faintly. "It's all perfectly safe… Audio stuff, pendulums, neat light thingies… The kind of stuff to help people relax and trance."

"Hm…" Gorou stroked his stubble-coated chin slowly. "So… what should we do next…?"

"Well, it's almost "night time"." Daiki pointed at the clock. It was 8:30 pm. "So why don't we get some rest? The dining hall's gonna be sealed up soon anyway. And we're not getting anywhere if we're tired."

"Seconded…" Ayano yawned. "All this worrying is wearing me out… and I won't worry if I'm asleep."

"Fine, fine." Juuro shook his head. "Lock your doors. Minimize risk. While I doubt the capacity for murder in this room…" He scanned the faces, eyes narrow. "...I don't deny it exists."

With that last chilling remark, he stood and left the room.

"He's pleasant." Hideyoshi grimaced.

"He's right though." Gorou said. He stood tall. "I want to believe in every person here! But until we know for sure, we can't take dumb risks! So lock your doors and stay in your room at night. Don't spend more time alone than you have to." He thumped his chest. "Got it?! I don't want anyone here doing something stupid like getting killed or killing! We're stuck here together, so we'll escape together!"

"Rrraaagh!" Mio suddenly stood tall, fists in the air. "I'm feeling all fired up! I'm gonna sleep so hard my bed breaks!"

"Ohohohoh~" Chikage smiled broadly. "What a charmingly simple creature you are… I still fear the future, but I shall do my best to remain safe." With a blink of an eye, she switched from haughty to overly sweet. "I hope you all protect me~!"

Sachiko smiled weakly. Gorou's advice was realistic, but much-needed. Morale had been raised, even if only a bit. She rose from her seat, and one-by-one everyone made their way out into the halls and towards the dorms.

* * *

Sachiko unlocked her door, and sat on her bed with a sigh. She popped her hair clips out and set them on the bedside table, before flopping back with a long sigh.

_My world sure got a lot crazier in the last six hours._ She pondered.

There was a sudden bell.

**Bing-bong-ding-dong…**

"Attention Ultimate Students! This is a school announcement!" Monokuma flashed onto the monitor. He was reclined in a large throne, smiling down ominously. "It is now ten PM! As such, it is officially nighttime. Remember, if you're out by the courtyard, in the gathering hall or the dining hall, you have five minutes to vacate, or you'll be locked in… And if you're in, you violated a rule…" He leaned in, voice cracking. "And you all know what that means right~?"

The bear slumped back down into his chair, chuckling. "With that, I hope you have a pleasant first night at the academy. Just remember to lock up tight, or else someone might prowl into your room… after all, you're totally helpless in your sleep… _Sweet dreams…"_

Sachiko shuddered as the monitor flickered off. That bear… She definitely had good reason to be frightened of him.

After digging around her room and finding some pajamas, she showered, changed, and crawled into her bed. Feeling paranoid, Sachiko triple-checked to ensure she had locked her door, before finally giving in.

Today had been rough. Tomorrow would be rougher.

Sachiko uttered a quick prayer to whatever god might listen, to keep her and her new friends safe, even if it was just for a while longer…

And with that, she drifted into an uneasy sleep...

* * *

**MONOKUMA THEATER**

_When talking about how people grow, there are many often begin the debate of "nature versus nurture". There are those that believe people are the way they are when they're born and never change, and those who believe people are formed by how they're raised._

_But what about Monokuma, you ask? Well I'm a bear after all! I wasn't even given enough nurture for that to be a factor! Humans are different though. All hung-up on this silly debate._

_So, let's put an end to it! If you have to even ask, you're totally stupid!_

_It's nature __**and**_ _nurture! Humans are formed through experience, __**and **__through innate tendencies!_

_So remember kids, if someone asks "nature or nurture" make sure to tell them how stupid they are and how grateful you are to Mister Monokuma for teaching you this nifty fact!_

* * *

**That's all from me. The prologue is finally done, thank god. I plan to actually do some chapters that are sort of free-time events, basically, a little further down the line. Who do you think I should do? I might even take your suggestions into consideration. Maybe. We'll see!**

**Hope you enjoyed. Leave a review if you did. Goodnight everybody~!**


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